Liverpool and Tottenham look to punch their tickets to the knockout rounds of the Europa League Thursday. Here we pick out five of the best of Thursday's games: Liverpool vs. Bordeaux Liverpool can clinch its place in the last 32 with victory over Bordeaux at Anfield. The Jurgen Klopp era at Liverpool is still in its infancy but the German's arrival is already helping transform the Reds, who thumped erstwhile Premier League leader Manchester City 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium Saturday. "I would love to win a game like this at Anfield. That's our next challenge," Klopp said, having seen his side knock off champion Chelsea and City in successive away games. Bordeaux is third in Group B, three points behind Liverpool, but its record in England makes for bleak reading with five defeats in five visits and no goals scored. Qarabag vs. Tottenham Hotspur The timing of Thursday's trip to Azerbaijan is not ideal for Mauricio Pochettino's side with the visit of Chelsea just three days later. However, Tottenham can wrap up qualification for the knockout phase with a win against Group J rival Qarabag, although the Azerbaijani champion is unbeaten at home in Europe this term. Conversely, Spurs have struggled on their travels and are without a win in four European away games, but confidence is high after a 4-1 demolition of West Ham over the weekend which saw England striker Harry Kane net twice to continue his red-hot goalscoring form. Celtic vs. Ajax Neither Celtic nor Ajax can afford a false step when they meet in Glasgow as both bid to overhaul Fenerbahce for second place in Group A. Successive defeats have left Celtic three points adrift of the Turks with Ajax just one point better off and a draw would see both sides eliminated if Fenerbahce beat already-qualified Molde. Celtic has gone nine games in this competition without a win — three short of the record — and defender Dedryck Boyata knows there's no more margin for error. Basel vs. Fiorentina Swiss champion Basel can claim its place in the next round by completing the double over Fiorentina and former coach Paulo Sousa at St Jakob-Park. Meanwhile, La Viola can do likewise with a win combined with a draw between Belenenses and Lech Poznan. The Italians relinquished top spot in Serie A over the weekend after a 2-2 draw at home to Empoli, having trailed 2-0 at half-time in Florence. Sousa admitted selection errors after leaving out Nikola Kalinic and Josip Ilicic, with the former coming off the bench for the second half and scoring twice to salvage a point. Lokomotiv Moscow vs. Sporting Lisbon Sporting is flying high atop the Portuguese league but its European adventure could end prematurely unless it beat Lokomotiv in Russia. Jorge Jesus' men are third in Group H with just four points after a comprehensive 3-0 defeat at Albanians Skenderbeu last time out extended their winless away run in Europe to 17 matches. Unbeaten Lokomotiv, which tops the group with eight points, can nail down a last-32 spot with a victory, which would spell the end for Sporting if second-place Besiktas beat Skenderbeu in Turkey.
